How Tea Party tax cuts are turning Kansas into a smoking ruin

[G_j]

http://www.latimes.com/business/hiltzik/la-fi-mh-kansas-a-smoking-ruin-20140709-column.html

Michael Hiltzik
LOS ANGELES TIMES

Sam Brownback, the Republican governor of Kansas, doesn't just believe in whistling past the graveyard--he's willing to stroll past it in full-throated song.

The graveyard is where the economy of Kansas has been buried since 2012, when Brownback and his Republican state legislature enacted a slew of deep tax cuts in a tea party-esque quest for economic "freedom."

Our new pro-growth tax policy will be like a shot of adrenaline into the heart of the Kansas economy," he promised then. Brownback's tax consultant, the supply-side guru Art Laffer, promised Kansans that the cuts would pay for themselves in supercharged economic growth.

Instead, job growth in Kansas trails the nation. The state's rainy-day fund is dwindling to zero. Month after month, revenue comes in even lower than fiscal officials' most dire expectations.

In the rest of the country, school budgets are finally beginning to recover from the toll of the last recession; in Kansas, they're still falling. Healthcare, assistance for the poor, courts, and other state services are being eviscerated.

..more..

[catbyte]

1. I swear, baggers won't be satisfied until they turn us into Somalia.

[adieu]

23. And then blame the

Black guy

[SummerSnow]

27. Then they won't be in Kansas anymore.

Www, that was bad

[Thinkingabout]

2. This is what you get when radical people are in charge. We should be showing this state as an

example of what happens when radicals are in charge. Another close example of a radical in charge is Wisconsin. Perry in Texas took the stimulus money and "balanced his budget" so it would look good when he ran for president. It upsets the balance and the other states with the radical governors and legislatures should take notice. Wanna break your state, do stupid things like Brownback has.

[onehandle]

3. These are the same people who have firm control of Boehner's House.

Thanks, Democratic mid-term non-voters.

[Larkspur]

6. Thanks to feckless Democratic leaders who

failed to advocate for core Democratic principles, but instead offered mealy-mouthed and pro-corporate policies.
These leaders also failed to realize that 2010 was a census year and would affect districts at the state and federal level. Therefore, they had no plan to counter the right wing extremists.

The DNC chairs since Howard Dean have been duds. Thanks to Prez Obama, Dean's 50 State Strategy was defunded and the DNC became just an arm of the President instead of a means to help the entire Party. Obama, and I'm sure his then chief of staff, Rahm "Wall Street Whore" Emmanuel, only viewed the resources of the DNC as an arm of getting Obama elected to a 2nd term. They did that but it cost them a Congress who could have given Obama a proud legacy.

[Fuddnik]

14. Kicked! Like a mule.

Democratic Leadership is a oxymoron.

I was muttering to myself in 2010 when the Democrats in Florida were doing absolutely nothing at the state level, other than promoting crony campaigns and undermining progressives.

Then to make matters worse, they installed a former ChoicePoint (remember the Bush-Harris voter purge?) lobbyist as State Chair. And her husband was on the Bush-Cheney legal team during the recount fiasco.

[A Simple Game]

13. And the problem will continue to linger as long as people like you continue

to blame the wrong people.

Why do you blame people for not choosing between Republican extreme and Republican. I don't even consider many Democrats Republican Lite but full blown Republican.

Yes I vote religiously, for the best candidate which is usually the most liberal candidate. Are you going to tell me who I have to vote for also? Try to remember what country you are talking about, we have the freedom to vote, or not, and to vote for the candidate we think is best.

Keep your totalitarian thoughts to yourself.

[leftyohiolib]

4. promised Kansans that the cuts would pay for themselves in supercharged economic growth.

also the iraqi oil revenue will pay for the war
we'll be greeted as librators
saddam has weapons of mass destruction
there are death panels in the aca

[Larkspur]

7. That's the old Laffer argument

that should be laughed out of existence.

[RoverSuswade]

11. Saint Reagan told me back in 1981 that his

trickle-down economics was going to make me, a poor man, a millionaire by the year 2000. Yeah, like that really happened.

[Fortinbras Armstrong]

16. I would quote Pope Francis on this.

His Apostolic Exhortation, Evangelii Gaudium -- "The Joy of the Gospel", describes trickle-down economics, "The promise was that when the glass was full, it would overflow, benefitting the poor. But what happens instead, is that when the glass is full, it magically gets bigger, nothing ever comes out for the poor."

He also wrote,

Some people continue to defend trickle-down theories which assume that economic growth, encouraged by a free market, will inevitably succeed in bringing about greater justice and inclusiveness in the world. This opinion, which has never been confirmed by the facts, expresses a crude and naïve trust in the goodness of those wielding economic power and in the sacra­lised workings of the prevailing economic system. Meanwhile, the excluded are still waiting.

[Cosmocat]

21. oh, make no mistake

it will be the liberals fault, or there will be something of topic to scream about until such time as they can blame it on the liberals ...

[jwirr]

5. A preview of the USA if the rethugs get control of the Senate in 2014. This is exactly what they

want the USA to look like. Beware people they are only working for the 1%.

[RedSpartan]

8. The problem, obviously, is that the tax cuts weren't BIG enough!

[DirkGently]

9. Sad. But at least the problems are at least being attributed to the bad policies.

Normally, they just double down and say things aren't austere ENOUGH to get better.

At some point, the Reality-Avoidance Bubble® has to burst.

[Eric J in MN]

18. Governor Brownback isn't admitting he was wrong.

Last edited Thu Jul 17, 2014, 04:02 PM - Edit history (1)

Brownback says that everything is going great.

The article criticizing the situation in Kansas is by a writer for the Los Angeles Times.

[DirkGently]

26. Kansas Repubs are endorsing his Dem opponent.

More than 100 current and former Republican officials endorsed Democratic state Rep. Paul Davis's bid to unseat Gov. Sam Brownback (R) Tuesday, marking a new setback for the incumbent, who was already facing a competitive reelection campaign.

A mass defection like this is not typically seen in statewide campaigns. It signaled the tough road ahead Brownback could face as the November election approaches.

The collection of Republicans, dubbed "Republicans for Kansas Values," endorsed Davis's bid at an event in Topeka. They oppose Brownback for a laundry list of reasons, including tax cuts he spearheaded, cuts to education spending and his alienating some centrist members of the GOP.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post-politics/wp/2014/07/15/more-than-100-republicans-endorse-democrat-against-kansas-gov-brownback-r/

[Eric J in MN]

35. Thanks, I wasn't familiar with that. NT

NT

[DirkGently]

36. Completely weird, isn't it?

And in Kansas, no less. Beware incoming airborne pork products!

[Mr.Bill]

10. He was a complete success.

Just like the Bush/Cheney gang. He was not there to govern, he was there to loot the place for his rich friends. Mission Accomplished.

[workinclasszero]

12. The koch bros own Kansas and Brownback is their employee

Their filthy greed will destroy the entire state.

It should be a warning to the whole country what the 1%'s and dominionist baggers intend to do to all of us if not stopped.

[broadcaster75201]

15. Don't care. Period. Let it burn. n/t

nt

[Eric J in MN]

17. Sam Seder discusses the Kansas situation

...in this video:

[kimbutgar]

19. Sadly Brownback and his ilk will win re-election this November

The people who can vote in Kansas are so brainwashed they will believe those commercials the Koch's will be pouring millions into their airwaves. There will be very little chances for opposition against them. I will bet the Koch's will buy up all the airtime to keep control of their state. Wisconsin and North Carolina are their success cases and Kansas was a full out blown success for them.

Kansas is too far gone to take it back. But if there is any chance the people can take their state back I wish them success.

[justgamma]

20. Read this thread and according to some

it's all Obama's fault. Thanks for nothing Obama.

[G_j]

24. first time I saw his name mentioned

was in your comment.

[justgamma]

29. Look up. Post #6.

[G_j]

31. somehow

missed that. But I have no problem when someone takes the time to explain their reasoning.

[justgamma]

34. It's not even that I disagree with them.

It's just every thread, no matter what is being discussed, someone will blame Obama for something. I get a little tired of it. When I've had enough of the wacko's, I get extra sensitive.

[EEO]

22. Some chickens are coming home to roost in that state.

[Gothmog]

25. Brownback is an idiot

The Laffer Curve is a joke and Brownback was an idiot to rely on Laffer

[Blue Idaho]

28. Brownback fiddles while Kansas burns.

What a nutcase! Sammy is going to deny this disaster is his fault all the way to a state bankruptcy. Hopefully the good people of Kansas will remove this threat to their state before he destroys what's left.

Will the last person leaving Kansas please turn off the lights and lock the doors.

[NM_Birder]

30. Implementation of the Detroit plan for financial feaseability.

[LynneSin]

32. When will they learn - Wealthy people do NOT use their tax cuts to create new jobs...

they bank the money in an offshore account somewhere so they can brag about how much money they have.

And sure, perhaps said benefactor of a tax cut might use that money to buy a car or a house which in a way does create jobs. But wouldn't the economy benefit even more if the working class had enough money on hand so they could buy houses and new cars. Benefiting the 1% will only create so many new jobs but benefit the 99% and these people will spend their money to help this economy grow.

[Jeff In Milwaukee]

33. Meanwhile in California...(nt)